William and Mary hopes to build on last season's success

William and Mary DE Mike Reilly discusses his preparation and prospects for the Tribe defense

William and Mary DE Mike Reilly discusses his preparation and prospects for the Tribe defense

Dave Fairbank, dfairbank@dailypress.com

BALTIMORE — William and Mary engineered a five-game turnaround from 2012 and played well in 10 of 12 outings a year ago. Tribe players were encouraged, but hardly satisfied.

"It's definitely a better feeling in the air this summer, for sure," defensive end Mike Reilly said. "Two years ago, we were angry — not really angry, but (the feeling) was, we've got to get better. This year, it's more about nit-picking and finding the small things we can do better.

"The difference between getting into the playoffs and not getting into the playoffs last year was 2-3 plays. If we turn one or two games around, we're in the playoffs. We're a little bitter that we didn't get in, so it's on us to do it. I think we'll be ready this year. The guys on our team understand that the difference between winning and losing is a really fine line in this league."

"We won a lot of games and we played well in a lot of games, but we really can't be complacent," said Reilly, voted the preseason Defensive Player of the Year. "We didn't reach our ultimate goal, which is to win a conference championship and a national championship. That's everybody's goal every year. Successful yes, but I don't think we reached our goals, so we need to improve on that."

W&M went 7-5 last season and by most metrics, finished one game shy of a playoff berth. Losses in its final two games, to eventual national finalist Towson and rival Richmond, dampened what might have been a remarkable season.

"This summer I don't get the feeling that anybody is taking the season we just had for granted," McBride said. "When you push as hard as we did and have as much success as we did last year and still fell short, that kind of drives every player to realize that you've got to be a stickler for everything you do on the field, because … two or three plays can make the difference in whether or not you're going to play in postseason or if you're going to be watching at home. The drive is there and everybody's working toward a championship."

William and Mary was picked fourth in a vote of coaches and media relations members, behind New Hampshire, Villanova and Richmond. The Tribe had six players recognized as preseason all-conference, including McBride at wide receiver and four members of what again appears to be a superior defense.

Job One for longtime head coach Jimmye Laycock and offensive coordinator Kevin Rogers is to identify a quarterback from among a handful of candidates. Injuries and inconsistency plagued the Tribe for the second consecutive year in 2013 as the offense uncharacteristically finished near the bottom of the conference.

"We've got to make some hard calls early on because whoever it is, we've got to get them a lot of (practice) snaps," Laycock said. "Once we put on pads, and it might have to be an arbitrary call, but we've got to get somebody — at least two — we've got to get them snaps and we've got to get them a lot of snaps. Because whoever it is, it's going to be an inexperienced quarterback."

Senior Raphael Ortiz is the only quarterback with experience, but he missed the entire 2013 season due to the effects of shoulder surgery following 2012. Laycock said that he is unsure of Ortiz's status or availability heading into camp. None of the other candidates has more than token game snaps.

"Having a playmaking quarterback would absolutely take our game to the next level," McBride said. "Ideally, that'd be great. But as far as needs, I think we just need a quarterback who knows the playbook, who has a high IQ and who can execute."

McBride cited plenty of skill position talent in himself and fellow wideout Sean Ballard and running back Mikal Abdul-Saboor, among others, as well as a solid, improving offensive line.

"You stick a quarterback in there who can execute and understand the game and get the job done," McBride said, "we'll be leagues better than we are right now."